Elon Musk Says He’ll Take Company Public Again a Few Years After Buyout
‘The Five’ co-host and Democratic strategist Jessica Tarlov and the Washington Examiner’s Sarah Westwood discuss Elon Musk’s Twitter acquisition on ‘WSJ at Large.’
Elon Musk, who has agreed to take Twitter Inc. private in a $44 billion deal, has told potential investors he could return the social-media company to public ownership after just a few years.
Elon Musk’s Twitter account is displayed on the screen of an iPhone in front of the homepage of the Twitter website. (Chesnot/Getty Images / Getty Images)
Mr. Musk said he plans to stage an initial public offering of Twitter in as little as three years of buying it, according to people familiar with the matter. The deal is expected to close later this year, subject to conditions including the approval of Twitter shareholders and regulators, the company has said.
GET FOX BUSINESS ON THE GO BY CLICKING HERE
Mr. Musk, the Tesla Inc. chief, has been speaking to investors such as private-equity firms, which could help lower the $21 billion he plans to kick in to help pay for the deal. The rest of the money is coming from loans. One firm considering participating is Apollo Global Management Inc., The Wall Street Journal has reported.
| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| TWTR | TWITTER INC. | 48.84 | -0.34 | -0.68% |
| TSLA | TESLA INC. | 909.25 | +6.31 | +0.70% |
Private-equity firms often take companies private with an eye toward fixing them up outside of the spotlight and then taking them public again within five years or so. Mr. Musk’s signal that he plans to do something similar could help assure potential investors that he would work quickly to improve Twitter’s business operations and profitability.
ELON MUSK SAYS TWITTER ‘MAY SEE SLIGHT COST FOR COMMERCIAL/GOVERNMENT USERS’
He has given few details about his exact plans for the company other than that he wants it to be less censorious in content moderation. At one point he said he doesn’t care whether he makes money on the deal. Mr. Musk has a history of missing his timelines and targets at Tesla, the electric-car company.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE ON FOX BUSINESS
Even though Mr. Musk is the world’s richest man, scraping together the funds to seal the deal was no mean feat. Once he managed to do so, Twitter’s expected resistance eased and the two sides quickly agreed to a deal at his original offer price of $54.20 a share.
Write to Cara Lombardo at [email protected] and Eliot Brown at [email protected]
" Conservative News Daily does not always share or support the views and opinions expressed here; they are just those of the writer."
*As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases
Now loading...